Home is where What Is?
by raecat
Summary: Nightwing returns to Gotham on the anniversary of Robin’s death… only to meet the newest member of the Bat Family. Raven accompanies him just as she has for the past 2 years, but something changes between the two. And just how will Batgirl handle this? Ra


Nightwing (Robin/Dick Greyson) - 22

Changeling/BB (Beast Boy) - 19

Raven - 20

Cyborg - 23

Starfire - 21

Batgirl – 20

Robin III (Tim Drake) – 11

Robin II (Jason Todd) – deceased – would be 17 this year

_Summary – Nightwing returns to Gotham on the anniversary of Robin's death… only to meet the newest member of the Bat Family. Raven accompanies him just as she has for the past 2 years, but something changes between the two. And just how will Batgirl handle this?_

_Note – For public scenes, I will be using their civilian names. For private thoughts or settings, I will use their code names. Hopefully, this won't be too confusing._

Home is where What Is?

**Chapter 1**

_Riiiiiing Riiiiing Riii-_

She hit the button; anything to stop the annoying sound. "Titans Tower, this is Raven. How may I help you?"

An old man appeared on the screen, a dark cave in the background. His soft voice, laced with a British accent, rang through the room. "Miss Raven, how good to see you. Is Master Dick there?"

"He's getting ready. We will be leaving for the airport soon."

"Good. You will be accompanying him then? I shall make sure your room is ready for you. Master Bruce will be delighted to have you."

"Thank you Alfred. Our flight should be arriving in Gotham around 4."

"I shall be there to meet you. Have a good flight, Miss Raven."

Raven nodded, turning off the video phone and sitting down on the large semi-circular couch. She sighed, looking down at herself. Out of her normal outfit for the trip, Raven wore black pants and a black short-sleeve blouse. Her leather jacket was thrown over her bag next to the door. She was waiting for Nightwing… no, Dick Greyson, who was still getting ready. Raven would be going by her "civilian" name, as they liked to call it: Rachel Roth. She and Dick would be flying into Gotham City. Tomorrow was the anniversary of the death of Jason Todd, the second Robin. Nightwing returned home this time every year to mourn with Batman. Raven had been accompanying him since they first learned the news, now 3 years ago. She was the only one of the Titans who could stand to be in the dark mansion with two depressed, brooding men. Besides, Raven had met Jason once. She mourned with Batman and Robin every year. Changeling always joked about them being a bunch of sad birds.

Raven glanced up at the clock. _'If Dick doesn't hurry up, we'll be late and miss our flight.' _Figuring he was brooding, she decided to go get him. Apparently she wasn't the only one with this idea; just as she stepped through the door, she ran smack into Cyborg, who had already gone to fetch his brooding leader. Each guy threw out an arm to steady her as she almost landed most ungracefully on her bottom.

"Um…thanks." Raven blushed slightly, upset with herself.

"Nah big." Cyborg grinned at her. "I was just getting Mr. Happy over here."

Raven looked at Dick. He had dark circles under his eyes, but he was alert. He gave her a small smile. "Ready?"

"I've been ready. Alfred called. He will meet us at the airport." Dick nodded and headed into the common room to address his team before leaving.

Starfire and Changeling were waiting for the others. Once again, Nightwing and Raven would leave and it would only be them and Cyborg to defend the city. Usually, it wasn't too much of a problem. Hopefully this week would be easy as well. Nightwing entered the room flanked by Raven and Cyborg, Nightwing and Raven in civilian clothes.

"Alright team. Raven and I will be in Gotham for the week. Cyborg is in charge. Call the Batcave if there is an emergency, our communicators will be off during the flights." Everyone nodded. "We're off then."

Dick and Rachel set out from the Tower, each with a suitcase and Rachel with a small backpack. Once on main land, they hailed a cab to the airport.

The trip was short. Dick barely had time to blink before they were bustled into the crowds. Rachel took charge like every year. She grabbed his hand as they headed through the busy crowds. She didn't want to loose him and knew he wouldn't follow on his own – he was too lost in thought.

Soon, they were sitting in the waiting area waiting for their plane to board. Dick finally rose from his stupor to find Rachel next to him, nose in a book. _'Typical. She always has a book to read.'_ Dick looked around at some of the other people in the waiting area. A few girls shot him flirty smiles; he just smiled politely, but uninterestedly, back. He also noted there were a few guys looking at him. After watching for a moment, he realized they weren't staring at him, but beside him. At Rachel. Dick turned to watch her read, her violet eyes skimming the pages, her dainty hand moving them. _'But, its just Raven… sure, she's pretty, but these guys are practically drooling.'_

One of the flight attendants at the desk made an announcement; their plane would be arriving late and so departure would be an hour late. Rachel looked up, placing her bookmark in her book. Fishing a cell phone from her bag, she gave Dick a small smile before walking over to the window for signal. He watched her go, as did the other men. He took her in; her lavender hair was longer now and pulled away from her face, her shoulders were slim, arms and hands dainty, her hips swelled perfectly from her waist while her lightly pinstriped pants hugged her flat butt and showed off her legs. She leaned against the large window, her hip thrown out, flashing her curves. Her close fitting blouse showed some of her cleavage; her breasts were the perfect size for her dainty body. She still had that air of mystery about her. He now understood why those men were drooling; she was perfect.

Rachel had decided to call Alfred to let him know of their delay. As she moved, she felt eyes on her. Feeling a bit self-conscious, she hugged her arm around her while she called.

_Riiiiiing_

"Wayne Manor," came the British voice through the phone.

"Hello Alfred. I just wanted to let you know that our flight will be leaving an hour late." She looked out the window at the tarmac, still feeling eyes boring into her.

"Of course, Miss Rachel. I will meet you and Master Dick accordingly. Have a nice flight."

"Thank you Alfred." She hung up the phone and walked back to Dick, who was watching her. _'Seems he's out of his stupor. For now.'_ She sat next to him. "I called Alfred."

"Good."

Silence. Rachel picked up her book. But she couldn't read. Those eyes were on her again. Lowering the book, she looked around. Her eyes met those of a man at least 10 years older than her. His eyes were boring into hers, but he grazed them over her body slowly. Then he winked at her. Rachel stiffened, glaring at the man. She dropped her face back into her book and tried to ignore him.

Dick looked at Rachel, watching her. She stiffened and he followed her gaze. A man in his thirties was staring at her and winking. _'That sick freak, he's undressing her with his eyes!'_ His own form of righteous fury welled up in him. _'That's my teammate that sicko is thinking about. My Raven… wait. MY Raven? It's not like we're dating or something. Sure, she's gorgeous, but no one should be undressing her with their eyes. I bet his sick mind is thinking about what he wants to do to her.'_ Dick looked again, his hand tightening into a fist. The man was still watching Rachel, but now he seemed to have a glassy, far-off look to his eyes. His fist shaking slightly, Dick was ready to go punch the man. Suddenly, a slim hand gently covered his. He looked over; Rachel's face was hidden in her book, but she wasn't reading. Her eyes were looking at him and he thought he saw a hint of fear in them. She was totally creeped out by this guy. He wove his fingers through hers and squeezed gently, smiling at her. She hinted a smile. "Let's take a walk."

He nodded and stood, offering her a hand up. She gave him an odd look and took it. _'He's just being polite. Maybe it will make that creep think twice.'_ She grabbed her bag and slipped her book into it, trying to ignore the man still watching her. As she walked past him, Dick gently slipped his arm around her. She looked up at him, but continued to walk. He had grown taller; she now fit nicely under his arm, the top of her head hitting his nose. They walked to a small café, close enough that they could hear any announcement about their flight. Sitting on stools at the counter, Rachel ordered some tea, while Dick ordered a coffee.

"Thanks." Rachel glanced sideways at him.

He smiled at her. "No problem. Sure you don't want me to go beat him up?"

'_Still has that damn cocky grin.' _"No thanks, Mr. Hero. Just as long as he stays away." A small tendril of her power began choking a nearby salt shaker. She dropped it and looked sideways at Dick. "Nice acting…"

'_Was it really? It felt right, having my arm around her…' _"Um, well, I was just hoping to deter him away…" He trailed off as their drinks were placed in front of them. He sipped his, talking softly. "He shouldn't be staring at anyone like that… Especially you."

"Me? Why?"

"You're a super hero. You've been saving this city for years now. Would he be treating you the same if he knew the truth?"

"Probably." Her voice came out hard and bitter. "He'd probably like it even better." Her small hand balled into a fist. Dick settled his hand over hers and squeezed gently. They sat in silence for a minute, each thinking while sipping their drinks.

"So… looking forward to seeing Barbara?" Rachel tried to act nonchalant, while she herself was not looking forward to a week with the redhead hanging all over her leader.

Dick grimaced. "Not really." When Rachel raised a questioning eyebrow, Dick continued. "I know what will happen. She won't leave me alone and will try to convince me to get back together with her. It just won't work and I can't put up with it. I mean, it just won't work. She's Batgirl and…"

"Because she's a super hero and teammate?" For some reason, Rachel was saddened by his comment.

Dick stared at her for a moment. "No, not really. If we started dating, she'd want me close by. Either she would move out here and become a Titan or she'd want me back in Gotham full time. It didn't work before because we were apart so long. But I know she doesn't want to leave Gotham and I sure as hell don't want to leave you or the Titans."

Before Rachel could respond, a flight attendant called for their flight to board. Dick left some money on the counter for the drinks and the two hurried back to their area to board the plane. The flight attendants smiled at everyone as they got on. Rachel was reminded of Starfire, happy to see you even when she had no idea who you were.

Rachel headed down the aisle, Dick following. She glanced at the numbers looking for the right row. The plane was small, one aisle with three seats on each side. She stopped by row 19. She and Dick had seats E and F, respectively. And there, sitting in seat D, was the man who had been ogling her earlier. Rachel sighed and looked back at Dick.

Dick looked over her shoulder at the man. "Could you please let us into the row?" He tried to be polite while wanting to punch him. The man grinned at them and stood, not leaving the row. Dick glared at him. "I believe I asked you to move." Reluctantly, the man moved out of the row, causing Rachel to back into Dick's chest. Dick leaned close to her ear. "Take the window seat."

Rachel looked back at him. Dick usually took the window seat so he could stare into space. Rachel read the whole trip, allowing her to ignore the person next to her. Dick leaned into her ear again. "I don't want him any closer to you than he has to be."

Rachel nodded and swiftly settled herself into the window seat, Dick following just behind her. Last thing he needed was for this man to try to separate them.

The man frowned as he sat back down in his seat. He had been hoping to be closer to the pretty young woman, but her protective boyfriend had stopped that. He wasn't stupid enough to pick a fight with this guy, who looked like he might easily kick his ass. So instead he settled himself with watching the girl out his eye.

Rachel pulled her book out of her bag and continued to read, trying to ignore the man staring again. By the time the plane had taken off, she was ready to kill him.

Once they were airborne, Dick turned in his seat towards Rachel, back to the man. The man was trying to look around him at Rachel. Turning, he was creating a protective wall between the two. Rachel curled up in the seat, snug against Richard, legs against the window. She was hidden from the man's wandering eyes. To the passer-by, they looked like a couple cuddling.

Deterred in his watching, the man looked away. Shortly, the plane began its decent into Gotham City Airport. Although they could have arrived by other means with far less hassle, the plane ride was to keep up appearances. The public knew that Richard Greyson had moved to Jump City and traveled to Gotham often to visit Bruce Wayne and Jason Todd. Everyone knew of Jason's tragic accident and that Richard traveled home to mourn. Richard could not just appear in Gotham one day. Someone had to see him travel.

Rumors had started when he began traveling with a girl no one had seen before. The people-watchers and tabloids had a field day. Some gothic looking girl with pale skin and purple hair, hanging out with Gotham's hottest and richest young man. Richard, like Bruce, had been pegged as a wild playboy, able to get any girl he wanted, and often went through many. Traveling with the same girl, year after year, was causing quite a stir. Richard was sure this would be all over the papers tomorrow, especially their cuddling on the airplane. He could not help thinking that this might deter Barbra a bit.


End file.
